"Kyllian!" she snapped lightly, her hand gripping his now. "Breathe!" She stood straighter, her posture suddenly commanding. "You are the king… you must be strong. A king is a god, he doesn't make mistakes. The moment he makes mistakes, he stops being a god."
She paused and her voice softened. "You are strong. My husband surely knew that, and he was a god until the end. He made no mistakes."
Kyllian looked away then.
"I shouldn't have married Jane," he finally admitted.
"Oh…" Ravena released a sigh and gave him a knowing look that said she had seen it coming from miles away.
"My dear boy. I know."
"You… you knew?"
"Of course I knew," she said, almost amused. "You stood next to her during the bonding ritual like she was a document you were being forced to sign. You didn't smile. You didn't look her in the eye. I thought you might cry. If that's not a red flag, I don't know what is."
A short, dry laugh escaped Kyllian's lips despite himself.
